| 摘要 |
An apparatus and method of assembling an inner tube (18) into a hollow outer tube (16) is disclosed for forming a tampon (12) applicator. The apparatus (46) includes a first member (48) configured to mate with the outer tube (18) and a second member (50) configured to mate with the inner tube (18). A vacuum is intermittently supplied to the first and second members to hold the inner and outer tubes (16, 18) in coaxial alignment. The apparatus also includes a push rod (80) which is designed to contact and move the inner tube (18) off of the second member (50) and into the outer tube (16). The movement of the push rod (80) is activated by a control mechanism (90) which can reciprocally move the push rod (80) a predetermined distance at a set time to permit the inner tube (18) to be inserted into the outer tube (16). The control mechanism (90) also enables the push rod (80) to be separated from the inner tube (18) after the two tubes are assembled. The method includes the sequential steps involved in using a vacuum to position the inner and outer tubes in coaxial alignment and then using the push rod to insert the inner tube into the outer tube. <IMAGE> |
